Sadly we are the niche generally - if an appliance has its firmware done right usually there is no need for another software package and few wish to program for

Sadly we are the niche generally - if an appliance has its firmware done right usually there is no need for another software package and few wish to program for such packages. An open source hardware very standardized and modular serviceable model would probably be a decent analog to the domain - it would commoditise the parts and help counter the nicheness in terms of economies of scale. The rarity of people who know enough to roll their own appliance design is probably one of the biggest obstacles. It isn't like 3D printing currently. Apparently even manufacturers who are advantaged by logistical simplicity apparently already regularly tweak the yearly designs based upon cost advantages. I suspect that ironically technological advancement could eventually make fridges better that way - thermocouple based copling has had a slow but steady upward trend line. If it keeps up then a bunch of cooling thermocouples, electronic thermoneters, a power supply, and a few microcontrollers/a Raspberry Pi descendant in an insulated box could put it in more traditional "hacker" skillsets.